For a lot of couples, the question isn’t whether the dog is part of the family. That was settled years ago. The question is what role that family member should have when the wedding day finally arrives.
And there are plenty of possibilities.
Your dog might walk down the aisle, carry the rings, wear a floral collar, appear for photographs and leave before the reception begins. They might spend the entire day with you, fall asleep under the head table and somehow end up on the dance floor. Or they might be much happier at home, appearing in your engagement photos or wedding details instead.
There is no single right way to include a dog in a wedding.
The best weddings with dogs aren’t necessarily the ones where the dog has the biggest role. They’re the ones where the couple considers the dog’s personality, comfort and safety alongside everything they hope the day will be.
Whether you’re still deciding if your dog should attend, looking for beautiful wedding inspiration or trying to work out who is going to hold the leash while you’re saying your vows, we’ve brought our Dogs & Weddings collection together in one place.
Should You Include Your Dog in Your Wedding?
This is the place to start.
It can be incredibly meaningful to have your dog there. They’re part of your everyday life, and for many couples it would feel strange to celebrate such an important day without them.
But weddings can also be long, noisy and unpredictable.
There may be hundreds of unfamiliar people, loud music, children running around, food everywhere, open doors, vehicles arriving and leaving, alcohol within reach and a schedule that doesn’t leave the newlyweds much time to look after a dog.
Some dogs will think this is the greatest day anyone has ever organized.
Others would vote to stay home.
Before giving your dog a wedding job, think honestly about how they respond to crowds, strangers, travel, unfamiliar places and disrupted routines. A dog who loves patios, parties and meeting new people may thrive at a relaxed outdoor wedding. A nervous dog who normally disappears upstairs when visitors arrive probably isn’t going to discover a sudden passion for 150 wedding guests.
Our guide [Should You Include Your Dog in Your Wedding? Pros, Cons & What to Plan] takes a much closer look at the decision, including some of the less glamorous things that are easy to overlook.
Looking for Wedding Inspiration?
Once you’ve decided that dogs and weddings belong together, this is where things get fun.
We’ve explored the idea through several very different photographic collections, from couture bridal fashion to country weddings and wonderfully unpredictable dogs stealing scenes they were never supposed to own.
Beautiful Wedding Photos With Dogs
Start with [Beautiful Wedding Photos With Dogs], our broadest collection of wedding photography inspiration.
These aren’t simply portraits of couples standing beside their pets. We looked for ways dogs could naturally become part of the visual story: getting-ready moments, ceremonies, dramatic landscapes, receptions, rainy streets, quiet portraits and the wonderfully imperfect moments that happen between the photographs everyone planned.
If you’re building a photography shot list, this is a particularly good place to begin.
Brides & Dogs
For something much more fashion-driven, head to [Brides & Dogs: 20 Extraordinary Bridal Fashion Moments].
Here, the wedding dog meets the world of bridal editorial photography. Think extraordinary gowns, beautiful architecture, dramatic locations and images that could almost belong in the pages of a fashion magazine.
The dog doesn’t need to match the dress or perform for the camera. In many of the strongest photographs, the contrast between couture and an entirely ordinary dog being a dog is precisely what makes the image work.
Country Weddings & Dogs
Dogs seem particularly at home at country weddings.
In [Country Weddings & Dogs: 20 Beautiful Moments With Country Soul], we leave generic “rustic wedding” styling behind and head into real country landscapes: gravel roads, grain fields, ranches, old farmhouses, weathered barns, tractors, horses, wildflowers, huge skies and the occasional muddy wedding dress.
The dogs run, explore, follow their people and generally behave as though the wedding just happens to be taking place in their world.
LGBTQ+ Weddings & Dogs
Our [LGBTQ+ Weddings & Dogs: 20 Beautiful Moments of Love, Style and Joy] collection celebrates two brides, two grooms and the dogs sharing their lives.
The emphasis is simply on exceptional wedding photography—beautiful clothes, interesting locations, intimate moments, enormous celebrations and dogs naturally woven into the day.
Because sometimes the best way to show that a dog belongs at a wedding is not to make a statement about it at all. The dog is there because that’s where family belongs.
The Real Star of the Wedding
And then there are the dogs who refuse to remain supporting characters.
[The Real Star of the Wedding: 20 Dogs Who Stole the Show] follows the wedding day with the camera’s attention firmly on the dog.
One rolls enthusiastically in the grass while the official portraits happen behind. Another monitors the wedding cake with extraordinary concentration. One sleeps through the speeches. Another watches the first dance from the edge of the floor. By the end of the night, the dog is sitting among abandoned shoes, dying candles and the remains of the party, wondering when everyone intends to go home.
It’s funny, but some of the photographs are also among our most emotional wedding images.
Dogs have a way of doing that.
Should Your Dog Be the Ring Bearer?
Giving the dog an official job sounds wonderful.
It can be.
It can also result in your wedding rings disappearing across a field attached to an animal currently chasing a squirrel.
Before attaching anything valuable to a collar, consider how reliably your dog walks toward a particular person, whether the aisle will be indoors or outside, how secure the rings will be and who takes control of the dog once their starring role is finished.
For the practical details, see [Should Your Dog Be Your Wedding Ring Bearer?].
And remember: the rings don’t actually have to travel with the dog. A ceremonial ring pouch can create the moment while the real rings remain safely in the hands of a responsible human.
Sometimes symbolism is considerably less stressful.
What About a Flower Dog?
A flower dog can be beautiful without turning your pet into a walking floral arrangement.
A restrained floral collar, greenery, a small accessory attached safely to a harness or simply walking alongside the flower girl may be all you need.
But flowers deserve more consideration than they sometimes receive. Some plants are unsafe for dogs, and even dog-safe flowers can become uncomfortable when heavy arrangements are attached around the neck or body.
Our guide [Should Your Dog Be a Flower Dog? Ideas, Safety Tips & What to Know] covers ways to create the look while keeping the dog’s comfort at the centre of the decision.
Someone Needs to Be Responsible for the Dog
This may be the single most important practical decision you make.
It shouldn’t be the bride.
It shouldn’t be the groom.
And “everyone will keep an eye on him” isn’t a plan.
On the wedding day, the couple will be pulled in dozens of directions. You’ll be getting dressed, greeting people, taking photographs, participating in the ceremony, listening to speeches and trying occasionally to eat something.
Your dog needs one clearly designated person who knows when they need water, when they need a bathroom break, where they’re supposed to be, when they’ve had enough and how they’re getting home.
That person might be a trusted friend or family member, or you may decide to hire someone specifically for the job.
We go into the options in [Who Takes Care of Your Dog on Your Wedding Day? A Guide to Wedding Dog Handlers].
A good handler also gives you something surprisingly valuable: permission to stop worrying about the dog.
Plan the Wedding From Your Dog’s Perspective
Humans see a beautiful reception.
A dog sees 120 strangers, ten open doors and approximately 4,000 things on the floor that might be edible.
It’s worth walking mentally through the entire day from that perspective.
Where will your dog rest? Where will they get water? Is there somewhere quiet to escape the crowd? Who takes them outside? Are venue doors frequently opening onto a road or parking lot? Is there chocolate within reach? Grapes or raisins? Alcohol? Unsafe flowers? Food scraps? Candles? Broken glass later in the evening?
And what happens if your dog simply decides they’ve had enough?
Having an exit plan isn’t admitting defeat. It may be what allows your dog to participate happily for the part of the wedding they actually enjoy.
A dog who joins you for photographs and the ceremony before heading home at 4 p.m. was still part of your wedding.
Let Dogs Be Dogs in the Photographs
After creating so many wedding collections, one lesson keeps coming back to us: some of the best dog wedding photographs happen when nobody asks the dog to pose.
Of course, take the formal portrait. You’ll probably treasure it.
Then tell the photographer to keep watching.
Get down to the dog’s height. Photograph through the rows of ceremony chairs. Look underneath the reception tables. Watch the dog while everyone else watches the speeches. Photograph from behind the dog as it observes the first dance. If it wanders through cocktail hour, follow it. If it falls asleep underneath your chair, photograph that too.
And if you’re posing for an exquisite wedding portrait while your dog is twenty feet away rolling upside down in the grass?
For heaven’s sake, photograph the dog.
Those unplanned images often say far more about the relationship than another perfectly posed portrait ever could.
Your Dog Doesn’t Need to Attend to Be Part of the Wedding
Sometimes the most loving decision is leaving your dog at home.
That doesn’t mean they need to disappear from the story.
Include them in engagement photographs. Have them with you while you’re getting ready and arrange for someone to take them home before the ceremony. Use a beautiful photograph somewhere at the reception. Commission artwork. Include a subtle reference in the stationery or décor.
You can even take wedding portraits with your dog on another day when there is no schedule, crowd or pressure.
The goal isn’t to prove how much you love your dog by keeping them at a twelve-hour wedding.
The goal is to find a way of including them that actually works for your dog.
Build a Wedding Day That Works for Everyone
There is something wonderfully grounding about having a dog at a wedding.
While humans worry about flowers arriving on time, whether the weather will cooperate and exactly when the first dance is supposed to begin, the dog has a considerably shorter list of concerns.
Are my people here?
Is there food?
Does anyone need me?
Can I lie down now?
Perhaps that’s part of what makes dogs such memorable wedding guests. They cut through all the ceremony and bring the day back to something much simpler.
The beautiful clothes will eventually go back into their boxes. The flowers will fade. The reception will end and everyone will go home.
And the next morning, your dog will wake up expecting breakfast exactly as it did the day before.
The wedding is one extraordinary day.
The family you’re building is everything that comes after it.
